This film noir detective story with fantasy elements takes place in China's northernmost corner, Heilongjiang province, in a nondescript industrial city where the grip of winter gets colder and colder as the story progresses. You will need to pay attention, as the plot is not explained verbally and you have to notice a lot of visual cues. The characters do not talk much really, and when they do utter a sentence or two, it has nothing to do with the plot. You could almost think that the director would be Jim Jarmusch but he's not obviously. Diao Yinan has seen an Aki Kaurismäki film or two, one can tell, and it is no wonder that the film was well received by the Berlin festival crowd. It is not the kind of film Chinese audiences would love, though. This does not make BCTI any worse as a film. It has a dark and twisted, sometimes silly sense of humour. Once you get the hang of it, the plot is easy to follow yet intriguing. Who dun-it - most viewers will not have a clue but neither does the police! The People's Republic does not send it's finest this far out in the north. They also have very little to work with to be honest. Detective Zhang who is obsessed with the case has been sacked from the force for very obvious reasons including serious drinking. In addition he can't skate and he's in Heilongjiang, which you will notice is not a good thing. The film wrings a lot of atmosphere from the utterly unpleasant surroundings. Excellent actors add to it. If you enjoyed the Coen brothers' Fargo I can see no reason why you wouldn't enjoy Black Coal, Thin Ice. In the final scene, the original Chinese name of the film, Fireworks in Daylight, will be explained - sort of.
Review of Black Coal, Thin Ice
